ex indian opener Virender Sehwag has been flatly dismissed Pakistanchances of reaching the semi-finals of the 2026 T20 World Cup, said he does not think Salman Ali Agha’s side can perform miracles.Pakistan still have a mathematical chance of making it to the last four thanks to England’s win over New Zealand in the Super 8s in Colombo on Friday. However, their lower net operating rates caused their rate of climb to rise dramatically. Even if they beat Sri Lanka, they will only be level on points with New Zealand unless they get a big win to drastically change the Black Caps’ net run rate.
The qualification equation is daunting. If Pakistan bat first and score 160 runs, they must win by at least 65 runs. If they pursue the same total, they will need to finish in 13.2 overs to take the lead over New Zealand and seal a semi-final spot.during discussion Comments Commentswhen the host outlined what would have happened if Pakistan had batted first, Sehwag responded bluntly: “Nahi hone wala. Aage padh (That won’t happen, please read further).”When the focus shifted to the possibility of a chase, Sehwag was equally dismissive. “Wo bhi nahi hone wala. (That won’t happen either).”He further elaborated on the show, “It’s not going to happen, that’s what I’m saying. It’s not going to be easy for Pakistan. England may receive prayers against New Zealand. But against Sri Lanka, those prayers didn’t work for Pakistan. They prayed for so long and it didn’t work. So I don’t think it’s possible,” Sehwag further said on Cricbuzz.Sehwag added that Pakistan’s only realistic course is for Sri Lanka to perform extremely poorly, effectively handing the game to them. He questioned how a team that had been struggling to reach 160 could suddenly be chasing that target at an alarming rate.“It would be great if they somehow qualify. If they score 160 and then win by 60, Sri Lanka will have to play some bad cricket. They need to get out for 90, which is not possible. Eating the total with 13.2 overs is possible, but their batting is not like that,” he added.“In any case, Pakistan cannot score 160 points, how will they equal the total in 14 overs? It will be tough,” he added.England have secured top spot in Group 2 of the Super 8 stage and a spot in the semi-finals. The remaining qualification spots in the group will be decided by Pakistan and New Zealand.
